Are you lotus owners satisfied with the high end speed of your cars? I am talking, 40-100 mph. I feel that this is one of the weaker points of the Lotus. Also, when answering, please state whether you have a base Elise, SC, or Exige. Thanks!
I may not understand everything about Lotus, but that is why I am posting in the newbie forum. I understand that handling is the key. I was just curious to see your opinions on acceleration from 40ish to 100. That is all.You don't understand Lotus
Are you lotus owners satisfied with the high end speed of your cars? I am talking, 40-100 mph. I feel that this is one of the weaker points of the Lotus. Also, when answering, please state whether you have a base Elise, SC, or Exige. Thanks!
...up to one hundred a naturally-aspirated elise is plenty quick, and from one hundred to one-twenty we can still run with the large-displacement touring cars, although we begin to lag just a touch...really it's over one twenty, and particularly one-thirty onward, that our cars are out of their element amongst contemporary high-power cars, and we really stretch to make those last twenty miles per hour before gearing out at one fifty-five...
...i definitely feel things slowing down from 120-130, but it's not until pushing beyond 130-135 that she gets into 'i think i can, i think i can' territory - in my experience, that's where she's conspicuously incapable of running with the bigger guns...That's a bit generous. At about 120, you're really hitting the wall. 130 will take a long time from there compared to, say, a Cayman S.
...some of the three hundredish horsepower cars are seeing sixty miles per hour in three seconds plus change; only just, but still - anything less than four seconds is formidable in my opinion...I would like to shave 1.5 sec off 0 - 60.
Dave where did you get the values for frontal area and Cd?Well of course the base NA Elise falls flat on it's face from 120mph+... the majority of the engine's horsepower is being used to push it's bigass drag footprint through the air...
0.42 drag coef x 16.5 sf frontal area...
Stock Elise = 167.7 whp
60mph: 167.7 total - 13.5 drag = 154.2 whp left to accelerate
80mph: 167.7 - 28.5 = 139.2
100mph: 167.7 - 52.6 = 115.1
120mph: 167.7 - 88.0 = 79.7 (less 1/2 of available power)
130mph: 167.7 - 110.0 = 57.7
140mph: 167.7 - 137.2 = 30.5
150mph: 167.7 - 167.7 = 0 (top speed)
Now for giggles let's see my TVS equipped 286.4whp beasty...
60mph: 286.4 total - 13.5 drag = 272.9 whp left to accelerate
80mph: 286.4 - 28.5 = 257.9
100mph: 286.4 - 52.6 = 233.8
120mph: 286.4 - 88.0 = 198.4
130mph: 286.4 - 110.0 = 176.4 (about as much as stock)
140mph: 286.4 - 137.2 = 149.2
150mph: 286.4 - 167.7 = 118.7
160mph: 286.4 - 202.4 = 84.0
170mph: 286.4 - 241.8 = 44.6
180mph: 286.4 - 286.1 = 0.3 (give or take top speed)
Of course gearing and power/torque peaks come into effect but it's a ballpark...
Basically power to weight makes you move... low aero drag / high horsepower makes you accelerate at higher mph...